Australia; Day 1 - July 4, 2001
After weeks of preparation, a report on Australian currency and my parents coming up with an unplanned $5,000, today was the day! I took off on my first international trip, to Australia. I got really emotional with my parents and cried for the first 15-20 minutes of the plane ride, but was also brimming with anticipation for a new adventure.
The 14 hour flight to Sydney was long but we got to watch some good movies. We crossed the equator around 8pm PST. They turned the lights out around 3am PST for us to sleep. It was the first time i’d been served a meal on a plane too. Dinner on the plane was beef and rice, it was a little odd to eat again, since we had that for dinner before we left.
Postcard of Sydney Skyline with fireworks.
When we arrived in Sydney we started looking for differences:
The bathrooms we labeled Male/Female instead of Men/Women
It wasn't a "restroom" but a "toilet"
They drive on the opposite side of the road, which we knew before leaving
The "no parking" signs are "no standing"
When we boarded the bus we met Janus, our tour guide, and Stu, our bus driver.
Picture of Stu and Janus.
The hotel was fancier then the ones i’d stayed at in the U.S.:
It took 2-3 minutes to figure out how to open the door and turn the lights on.
We got 2 pillows on each bed, but no sheets... just comforters.
Another difference: The toilet didn't have a handle to flush but 2 circle buttons, one had a line down the middle with one side colored in, the other was fully colored.
To me Sydney looks a lot like San Francisco, with lots of big trees and buildings. There are apartment houses close to the street and lots of cars. I guess we'll see how much they are similar when we tour Sydney and go to the opera house tomorrow.
This is the first time I will not see the fireworks for the forth of July. I usually don't care very much about it but for some reason "skipping" over the 4th was a bit sad this time.